By Thapelo Molefe
The contempt of court case involving several ANC leaders — including secretary-general Fikile Mbalula, for allegedly undermining an interim interdict halting the Eastern Cape provincial conference — has been removed from the urgent roll, while the conference itself has been suspended until further notice pending the resolution of legal disputes.
The matter, heard in the Eastern Cape High Court in KuGompo City, was removed from the urgent roll on Saturday and postponed for later hearing on the ordinary opposed motion roll after the ANC agreed to stop the conference while the court challenges continue. Costs were reserved.
The case was brought by ANC members Lwazi Rotya, Sinethemba Mpande, and Nompumelelo Mzothwa against senior party leaders, including Mbalula, National Working Committee member Mmamoloko Kubayi, Eastern Cape ANC chairperson Oscar Mabuyane and others.
It followed an interim court order issued on Thursday interdicting the conference amid disputes over branch processes, delegate accreditation, QR codes, and alleged manipulation of the membership system.
Speaking outside court, attorney Sinawo Makangela, representing the applicants, said the ANC had effectively conceded to their demands.
“They’ve just returned to us to say, look, we concede, we agree that we’re now going to stop with the conference completely so that we allow all other processes to unfold,” Makangela said.
He added that while the urgent aspect of the case had been set aside, the contempt proceedings themselves remain active.
“We’re just removing it from the urgent roll… but still they have to respond to the allegations in our papers,” he said.
Makangela said the matter would now proceed through the normal court process, with the parties expected to exchange further affidavits before it is enrolled on the opposed motion roll.
He stressed the seriousness of the case, describing contempt of court as a threat to the rule of law. “Once you undermine a court order, that is urgent. It’s very urgent… the courts have to guard against anyone who wants to tamper with that space,” he said.
One of the applicants, Lwazi Rotya, said the decision to halt the conference was necessary given what he described as continued defiance of the court order.
“We are coming out here to tell everyone at home that the conference is discontinued,” Rotya said.
He added that members had approached the court after witnessing ongoing conference activities despite the interdict.
“There were activities on the conference, registration and so forth… that is precisely why we filed for contempt,” he said.
Rotya also criticised the internal processes within the ANC in the province, saying members had long raised concerns about irregularities.
“The process was never clean… we want a conference, but it must be a credible process, a lawful process,” he said.
“We must go back to the drawing board and fix what we need to fix… make a clean process, make a credible process, make a lawful process.”
The ANC had already indicated on Friday that the elective conference would be put on hold, and delegates who had travelled to KuGompo City were later told to return home.
Provincial secretary Lulama Ngcukayitobi confirmed in a notice that the conference had been postponed until further notice.
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